Second, investors are putting more money in their accounts. Schwab, for example, has record levels of net new assets. And client engagement in the market is up. “The percentage of cash has gone down to two- or three-year lows, because they’re buying stocks and mutual funds” rather than keeping it in cash, Repetto told me.

Third, for the cash that is being held in customer accounts, the online brokers are making more money because interest rates are rising, and they are being stingy in paying for that cash.

Finally, it’s fair to give bitcoin some credit. Bitcoin futures have slowly rolled out, but the ecosystem around bitcoin, particularly any stocks associated with bitcoin, have seen very heavy activity.

Put it all together, it means profits are higher: Repetto recently increased his 2018 and 2019 earnings estimates for ETrade, Schwab and TD Ameritrade.

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